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FC Barcelona forward Neymar has been cleared of tax evasion charges in his native Brazil according to a statement by his father.

The Brazilian International forward, who has been under investigation for alleged tax fraud since a few years ago, could well be cleared of all charges following a “termination of proceedings regarding the complaint on tax evasion”.

Neymar himself has already been fined €56.7 million last year for failing to report earnings from his contracts with Brazilian club Santos, Barcelona and his sponsors between 2011 and 2014.

However, Neymar Sr said on Tuesday that his son Neymar was cleared of any wrongdoings and his case has been “officially closed” following several appeal processes completed by a court.

“It is with great joy the we received the news of the termination of proceedings regarding the complaint on tax evasion directed by the Federal Public Ministry,” Neymar Sr said in a statement. “The proceeding is officially closed, thus it proves the lawfulness on every act we took.

“During four years of unfounded accusations me, my family and our employees suffered a lot and in every possible way. But albeit lots of people doubt, there’s justice in our country.”

“Accusation by accusation, one after the other, they were all defeated by our defence, leaving it clear that we did not evade not one penny in taxes. Now I hope we can focus only in our jobs, and that me and my family can have the peace we deserve.”

Nevertheless, there could be another major issue at hand for Neymar as Paris Saint-Germain is confident of a 90 per cent chance to sign the player. It was an unpopular thought in FC Barcelona, and although his teammate Gerard Pique posted a photo of the pair at the weekend on social media with the caption: “He stays,”, Pique admitted himself that he does not know for certain whether Neymar will remain at Barcelona.

Michael Carrick has agreed to sign a new one-year deal with Manchester United ahead of his testimonial game on 4 June.

Carrick, who was also a former England international, joined the Red Devils from Tottenham in an £18.6m deal in 2006 and has played 458 games in all competitions in a United jersey, scoring 24 goals.

With United, the 35-year-old has won five Premier League titles, the Champions League, an FA Cup and two League Cups, and while the club had largely underperformed this season, they were still able to secure the Europa League trophy — a title that has eluded the club since its inception.

Although missing out of the Premier League top-four, United will still be able to play in the Champions League next season after their Europa League victory.

His contract was previously coming to an end in June.

“What a fantastic way to finish off the season, with a new trophy in our cabinet. I am delighted that my journey with this great club is going to continue,” Carrick said in a statement published at the Manchester United official website.

“My focus now is looking ahead to my testimonial match next Sunday; it will be a very proud moment for me and my family, and is the perfect way to top what has already been a great season. I am thrilled that the fans will also get to see our shiny new Europa League trophy on the day.”

“I have thoroughly enjoyed working with Michael over this past season,” said United coach Jose Mourinho. “Not only is he a great footballer, he is also a fantastic human being and a great role model to our younger members of the team.”

Belgium thrashed Estonia 8-1 to extend their lead at the top of Group H in their World Cup qualifier in Brussels even as Eden Hazard gave an injury scare.

The Red Devils have won their first three qualification games under Roberto Martinez and they impressed once more – with Thomas Meunier heading the hosts ahead early on before Dries Mertens and team captain Eden Hazard struck.

Henri Anier pulled one back for Estonia to give them hope heading into the second half but Belgium ramped things up and ran roughshod over the visitors’ defence. Yannick Carrasco converted Romelu Lukaku’s cross before Liverpool’s Ragnar Klavan scored an unfortunate own-goal.

Mertens added his second of the game before Lukaku added the seventh and eighth with clinical finishes late on.

However, Belgium had to replace Hazard 73 minutes in after the Chelsea player picked up a knock and signalling to the bench he was unable to continue. While it was unclear how bad the injury was, it will be a further blow to Antonio Conte’s Chelsea, as Blues star striker Diego Costa also struggles for fitness.

Still, the win means that Belgium are now clear at the top of Group H, with Greece in second spot after Giorgos Tzavellas’ stoppage-time equaliser at home to Bosnia-Herzegovina.

The match in Athens saw both sides finish with 10 men, after both Kyriakos Papadopoulos and Edin Dzeko dismissed after a clash with 10 minutes remaining.

Bosnia-Herzegovina looked set to win with Greece goalkeeper Orestis Karnezis’ first-half own-goal when Miralem Pjanic’s free-kick hit a post, hit him and went in, but Tzavellas lashed home from outside the area with seconds left on the clock to deny the visitors.

The draw meant that third-place Bosnia-Herzegovina, who could have been level on points with Greece with a win, has to settle for third place.

Premier League giants Chelsea is set to make a bid for AC Milan defender Alessio Romagnoli.

As Blues manager Antonio Conte tries to add depth to his squad before the summer transfer window closes, his club will make a €35m bid for the 21-year-old Italian international, with an additional €5m in performance-related add-ons.

Conte has been eager to bring in a defender, a striker and a reserve goalkeeper before the transfer season closes next week.

The Italian coach sees Romagnoli as a long-term replacement for club captain John Terry, who has started the first two Premier League games for Chelsea alongside Gary Cahill.

But with Kurt Zouma injured, the Italian manager feels he is a player short in that position, despite the fact that Branislav Ivanovic can also assume centre-back role.

Romagnoli, who arrived from Roma for €25m last summer, has a contract with Milan that stretches to 2020 that also pays around €2m a year. Chelsea is likely to offer in the region of €3.5m a year.

However, Milan was reported to be keen to keep him, but would sell the player should they be able to get an adequate replacement.

Rumours have it that the club is interested in signing Sao Paulo’s Rodrigo Caio.